Fianna Fáil Councillor Rachel Doherty says new proposals published by her party will go a long way to encourage and support local entrepreneurs and small businesses. The document, “SMEs Driving Success”, outlines a number of tangible measures that will ensure that small and medium businesses in Roscommon and across the country to ensure they can grow and expand.
Cllr. Doherty commented, “Small and medium businesses are the backbone of this economy, but under Fine Gael and Labour they have been burdened with an overly bureaucratic, overly regulated and high cost system. Many entrepreneurs are reluctant to take a risk and start their own business because the environment created by this Government makes it so difficult. They’re worried about cash flow problems, the power that banks have been given, the amount of red tape involved and the lack of supports available to help them.
“Fianna Fáil wants to change that and encourage people who want to set up their own business to take the leap. We realise that SMEs have the potential to generate substantial local employment. Small businesses are more likely to employ local people with local expertise – and nowhere is this more important than in Roscommon, which has been completely left behind by this Government.
“This SME policy will see small businesses and entrepreneurs rewarded if they create jobs. It also includes measures such as
– Extending social protection supports to the self-employed;
– Establishment of a fully licensed state enterprise bank and mechanisms to incentivise crowd funding to provide credit directly to SME’s;
– Make commercial rates work for business by revamping the current system;
– Provide progressive relief from employers’ PRSI for job creation;
– Enable SMEs access a greater share of public procurement tenders.
“We want to see small businesses given access to appropriate funds so that they have the capital to set up, grow and expand. The regulatory burdens that have been placed on businesses here need to be relaxed and there needs to be a levelling of the playing field so that these SMEs are not at the mercy of unfair banking practices”.
